Major responsibilities:
1) to implement national laws, regulations, policies and guidelines on environmental protection; to formulate relevant local regulations and standards and supervise their implementation; to draw up environmental protection programs and plans;

2) to direct the environmental protection affairs concerning such factors as water, air and soil; to direct the measures to prevent and control the pollution caused by sewage, waste gas/residues, hazardous chemicals, noise, mechanical vibration, electromagnetic radiation and automobile emission; to handle environmental accidents and ecological damages; to investigate cases against environmental protection laws and punish the violators; to handle disputes concerning pollution; to supervise the enforcement of environmental protection codes;

3) to organize environmental impact assessments for major economic programs, development plans and technological policies; to review the environmental impacts of local construction projects, to direct acceptance checks for environmental projects, and to supervise the pollution-controls for construction projects; to supervise the registration and issuing procedures for discharge permits; to conduct environmental assessments for enterprises above certain scales;

4) to collect pollutant-discharging fees and off-standard pollutant-discharging fees; to manage environmental protection funds;

5) to organize other relevant departments to conduct overall environmental protection work; to supervise environment-sensitive activities including natural resource exploitation and ecological environment improvement; to protect biological diversity;

6) to supervise the quality of local drinking water; to coordinate neighborhoods' environmental protection activities; to supervise marine environmental protection;

7) to handle the affairs concerning administrative civil penalties in environmental protection cases; to conduct administrative reviews for the appeals concerning such penalties made by its subordinate departments; to handle pollution-related complaints; to submit environmental protection proposals to the municipal people's congress;

8) to direct local statistics and information work on environmental protection; to publish regular reports on local environmental quality;

9) to formulate local programs and policies on environmental protection technologies; to reward and promote the achievements in relevant fields;

10) to direct local environmental protection management system and environmental certificate management work; to organize qualification reviews for the undertakers of local environmental protection projects; to direct and promote local environmental protection industry;

11) to direct the promotion and education work on environmental protection; to organize international exchanges and cooperation; to direct the work of its subordinate departments;

12) to undertake other assignments given by the municipal party committee, the municipal government and other governing bodies.